Well now, it's certainly been awhile and for a while, I sorta fell out of Darkstalkers. But then I found the comics. Enjoy

25

…Morrigan…

That was the last thing on my mind before I blacked out. I was apparently still alive and laying on something hard other than the ground. I opened my eyes, once again conscious to the world around me and immediately found something wrong.

I can't move my body!

What the hell was going on? I scanned the area around me my eyes and realized that I was somewhere else inside the greenhouse and apparently on a metal table. It set off alarms in my head because it felt as if I was awaiting an operation.

…Or an autopsy…

How did I get here? One moment I was on the ground staring into Morrigan's eyes before I passed out. Speaking of which, where was she? Last I seen her, she was in danger. Was she even alive still?

I really hoped so.

"Ah, so you're awake."

I blinked in surprise as a man came into view with his back facing me. He stood in front of a shelf with rows of blue flowers very similar to the one that bit me. He scratched one of them under its chin (well where its chin would've been) with his index finger.

"It's very surprising that you're conscious, considering the potency of the toxin that is coursing through your veins."

My eyes widened.

Toxin?!

"Don't worry, it merely leaves you paralyzed for a few hours," he said as if reading my mind. "It won't kill you."

The man turned towards me with a smile. To me, it was the strangest smile that I had ever seen. I didn't sense any devious or murderous intent behind it. As a matter of fact, there wasn't anything behind it. However, it did make me realize something else.

This guy isn't human!

"You're no ordinary human, are you?"

I tried to open my mouth to reply, but I wasn't able to. I couldn't even make a sound. The man chuckled.

"You are rather astonishing. Though I wasn't as surprised as I was when I found a succubus in my trap as well."

My eyes widened.

Morrigan…!

I soon found myself glaring at him which seemed to only amuse him.

"Ooh, scary," he said, feigning nervousness. "If you're upset about her then all you had to do was look behind you."

He pushed my head with his index finger so that my head was facing away from him—

--and onto the very one that I was thinking about.

Morrigan…

She lied still on a metal table not unlike the one I was on. Her eyes were closed, but the steady rising and falling of her stomach told me that she was still breathing. She was still alive.

"I nearly had to triple her dose," the man said. "Unlike you, she isn't human. Though an increased dosage would keep her paralyzed like you, I upped the amount so that she'd stay comatose. I believe it's safer that way…"

He grabbed my chin and moved my head so that I was looking at him.

"…wouldn't you agree?"

Bastard!

Though I was relieved that Morrigan was alright, I grimaced at the fact that we at the mercy of this vampire. But why didn't he just bite us while we were sleeping? It wasn't much of a surprise that he turned back to the table.

"You're probably wondering why you're still alive," he said.

This was getting really creepy. I really hoped that he couldn't read minds. My eyes widened when he turned around and held up a syringe and a scalpel.

"Well now, let's see what exactly makes you tick, shall we?"

Shit! This is an autopsy!!

I frantically tried moving my arms and legs while praying that they would respond. This nut was going to send me off to la-la land while he carved me open like a Christmas turkey. Suddenly, something happened; something that I would consider a miracle for the rest of my days.

Three black spears pierced the vamp in his chest. He looked past me with eyes wide.

"I-Impossible…" he wheezed.

My eyes followed the long black spears onto the only person that I knew who possessed them. With her head slightly raised, Morrigan glared at the vamp and raised her arm into the air with the spears extending from it. It was then that I noticed something strange about her; her eyes were a dull green and lacked life. What in the world was wrong with her? I looked back to the vamp and saw that Morrigan was holding him in the air. He stared down at us, both angry and frightened as he squirmed. The spears then began to grow longer, moving the vamp further away from us. Suddenly they began to retract, but not before dropping the vampire somewhere. I guessed that it was into a lake from the splashing noise that followed.

"Daisu…ke…"

I looked back to see her reaching for me. I wanted to reach out and grab her hand, but I couldn't. Suddenly to my horror, she slid off the table and crashed onto the ground. She lied there motionlessly. I tried moving to help her, but it was no use. My body wouldn't respond. What made it worse was that I began hearing the rustling of bushes.

Someone was coming.

I felt my heartbeat speed up and felt as if it was going to pop out of my chest as I heard footsteps moving towards me. Was it that vampire? No, it couldn't be. Morrigan had stabbed in the chest. As the footsteps drew closer, I began steeling myself for the threat to come.

"Daisuke? Morrigan?"

My eyes widened. I recognized the voice.

Rose?

Just as her name appeared in my mind, her hooded face appeared in my sight. It was then that I noticed her bright blue eyes staring at me in relief.

"Thank God, I found you," she said, the relief evident in her voice.

I couldn't help but silently agree.

"Don't worry, you're safe now."

Rose got both of us away from the work area that that vampire had set up. I was amazed at her strength as a vampire, since she carried both of us at once. At the moment, she had left me alone with Morrigan. I stared at her unconscious form as she lied against the tree right next to me. It was amazing for her to move and kill that guy, despite the amount toxins that paralyzed her body. She looked peaceful lying there; beautiful even. I wondered if she was even aware that I was watching her.

"Hey, Mr. Daisuke…"

Rose startled me. I didn't even hear her come back. I looked at her as she approached me and knelt down. She held up a small vial of green liquid.

"This is the antitoxin," she said. "As soon as I inject it into you, you'll be able to move again."

I wanted to smile at this but as expected, I couldn't. I was so happy at the news that it hadn't even occurred to me as to how she came across an antidote. However, I did kinda wonder…

So how is she gonna inject that into me?

I didn't see a syringe anywhere. For the moment I remained puzzled as she lifted my arm. My ended when poured the liquid into her mouth then bit my arm. Earlier, I remember saying that I couldn't feel my body.

Well I certainly felt that!

I inwardly cringed at the pain in my arm. I suddenly sat up.

"Gah! That hurt!"

I gave Rose a blank look as she stared back at me surprised. I began grinning when it finally dawned on me.

"Ha! I can talk!" I laughed as I threw my arms up. "I can move! Woohoo! My arm hurts!"

Okay so maybe that last one was a little weird. Rose seemed taken back by my outburst, but smiled nonetheless. I hoped that she didn't think I was some kind of masochist.

"Well, I didn't expect the effect to be that immediate," she said, chuckling.

My smile suddenly faded when I looked down at my arm. Blood trickled from the two holes that were not embedded into my arm. My expression turned grim.

"Hey Rose?"

Upon seeing the look on my face, a nervous expression appeared on her face.

"Will I turn into a vampire?"

As soon as I looked at the wound it was the main question that came up. Rose stared at me incredulously for a moment before sighing and giving me comforting smile. She seemed relieved.

"No, you'll be alright."

This time, it was my turn to be relieved. Now when thought about it, I didn't know very much about vampires.

"I'm glad to know that you're alright…"

Rose's and my eyes widened when we heard the voice. We turned to see that vampire again, only this time he seemed to be covered from head to toe in burns.

"What the hell happened to you?" I asked.

Though he looked as if he was in pain, he smirked.

"I don't think you have to worry about what happened me, but rather what I'm going to do to you…"

Just then, a familiar figure hung limply from the ceiling in vines...to my horror.

Morrigan!

"…And what I'm going to do to her!"

"You bastard…!"

Before I realized it, that vampire was wearing a gas mask. I wondered what he was up to but then one of those poisonous blue plants that bit me earlier appeared. The difference however, was its size. This plant was about the size of a small house. The plant lowered its head and opened its mouth. Suddenly, I was surrounded by some kind of pink fog.

"If breathed in, this gas decomposes everything while it's still living," that vampire said. "It's so powerful that it could kill even vampires."

Well this was bad. Now my survival was entirely on how long I was able to hold my breath until I get out of here. I heard the vampire beginning to laugh maniacally as the gas grew thicker. It looked like the gas was going to be here awhile.

Damn.

Wow, it just seems that Daisuke came out of the fire and into the furnace doesn't it. Now that I'm back, I like to thank everyone who's read this story and those who reviewed. As of now, this story has reached that fav list of thirty people and the alert list of eighteen. Hopefully those numbers will increase. Well that's all for now.